Service connection for actinic keratosis (seborrhea keratosis), malignant melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell skin cancer is denied.,Service connection for carotid artery disease is denied.,The Veteran's service connection claims for actinic keratosis, malignant melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and basal cell skin cancer are not supported by the evidence of record.
The deciding factor: There is no credible evidence showing that any of these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to service. The Veteran's assertions have been outweighed by negative treatment records prior to their current manifestation.,The condition was not present in service and there is no evidence of continuity of symptomatology post-service. Additionally, the VA examiner concluded that the carotid artery disease is less likely than not caused by or a result of ischemic heart disease.,There is insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between any current conditions and service.
- Claimed conditions
- actinic keratosis (seborrhea keratosis), malignant melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell skin cancer, carotid artery disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 6, 2019
- Citation
- 19116513
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19116513.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The appeal for service connection for skin cancer was dismissed due to untimeliness, while the claim for squamous cell carcinoma was granted.
- Partly granted
The Board dismissed the claim for service connection for headaches and remanded claims for service connection for various other conditions, including open angle glaucoma, sensorineural hearing loss, asthma, heart disease, bladder cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hypertension, carotid artery disease, coronary artery disease, and renal artery disease as they were not shown to be chronic in service or manifest within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology was not established; and there is no evidence that any of these disabilities are otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma, finding that the Veteran's condition is related to his active service, including conceded in-service exposure to Agent Orange.
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